Machine Guns: A vital necessity for armies fighting in World War I. This version is an older French St. Etienne model 1907. 39,000 were manufactured before factories could produce more of the newer and better Hotchkiss Model 1914 machine gun. Credits: Image: Scientific American, September 12, 1914

August 1914: World War I Breaks Out

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RIFLE GRENADE: Norwegian Nils Waterson Aasen invented several grenades and small bombs. Two are shown here: a rifle grenade being fired by the man on the ground, the other (in the background) we would now describe as mortar shells. These relatively small explosive charges increased the effectiveness of infantry. Image: Scientific American, February 21, 1914

MACHINE GUNS: A vital necessity for armies fighting in World War I. This version is an older French St. Etienne model 1907. 39,000 were manufactured before factories could produce more of the newer and better Hotchkiss Model 1914 machine gun. Image: Scientific American, September 12, 1914

MACHINE GUN TRANSPORT: Early in the war the Belgians made use of large Belgian mastiffs (dogs) to move machine guns (such as this one made by Maxim) and their ammunition quickly and efficiently. Dogs were less expensive than horses. Image: Scientific American, September 19, 1914

“AN ARMY MARCHES ON ITS STOMACH”: ​Teaching cooking and hygiene to U.S. Army cooks meant that “In future wars the bullet, not ill-prepared food, will be the cause of loss of life.” (Although in World War I artillery was a more guilty culprit.) Image: Scientific American Supplement, March 7, 1914

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FORAGING WITH STEAM: ​An army unit uses a steam-powered tractor hitched up to a train of carts to gather supplies taken from a countryside area of France, 1914. Image: Scientific American, September 5, 1914

SUBMARINE HUNT: ​In the opening months of World War I German submarines sank several Allied warships. In turn the Allies sank five U-boats, including U-15 and U-18, which were rammed and sunk. The image here is generic and does not refer specifically to those incidents. Image: Scientific American, December 19, 1914

THE STRONGEST FORTS: ​Belgium and France anchored their defenses with modern forts built around carefully designed massive turrets with iron armor several feet thick. Unfortunately, the forts were designed and constructed in the late 1880s and 1890s, and without modernization were quickly surpassed by gun technology. Image: Scientific American, October 3, 1914

THE BIGGEST GUN: The two “Big Bertha” German siege howitzers were still in the prototype stage when war broke out. They were rushed to Liège, Belgium, and other forts where their 42-centimeter shells smashed the older defenses. (This gun is shown without the blast shield protecting the crew). Image: Scientific American, October 3, 1914

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CIVILIANS IN THE WAR: ​The garrison in the city of Antwerp, Belgium, held out against the German invaders until October 10, 1914. Zeppelin airships bombed the city twice, killing 10 civilians—a new aspect of war that was considered an outrage at the time. Our photograph shows a residence with shrapnel damage. Image: Scientific American, September 26, 1914

AERIAL PHOTOGRAPHY: ​From the earliest days of World War I, air scouts, usually armed only with a camera, were highly valued. The device shown here was one design to make it easier to take photographs of ground fortifications and troops on the move. As the war progressed, armed fighter planes fought for control of the skies. Image: Scientific American, October 24, 1914

PIGEON SCOUT: Photographic enemy fortifications and movements from the air was a top priority in World War I. But aircraft and pilots were vulnerable. This device attempted to solve the problem: a small camera attached to a pigeon. There is no evidence it was ever used successfully. Image: Scientific American, October 10, 1914

INDUSTRY OF WAR: When World War I broke out armies quickly discovered that ammunition could not be produced quickly enough. These shells (probably British 18-pounders) are being filled with shrapnel balls by hand on a small production line. Image: Scientific American, December 5, 1914

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KNOW THE ENEMY: A dismounted French cavalry trooper coolly collects valuable information on movements of the enemy, 1914. The horse, however, looks a little nervous. Image: Scientific American, October 24, 1914

WAR AND THE IMAGINATION: Many young men in 1914 thought war might be fun. Here British troops (from the London Scottish regiment) practice charging with rifle and bayonet. Note that the ground they are running over is firm and grassy, unlike the thick clinging mud they encountered in northern France and Flanders. Image: Scientific American, December 5, 1914

BARBED WIRE: In World War I most attacks against a defensive position meant clearing a path through the dense forests of wire protecting the enemy. Here, soldiers push “Bangalore torpedoes,” long tubes filled with explosive, through wire entanglements. The torpedoes would (sometimes) blast a path through the wire. Image: Scientific American, December 5, 1914

MODERN WAR: A photograph from the early months of World War I by Meurisse, titled “Cuirassiers of the French army assisting a wounded comrade.” It is unknown if the subject of the photo was staged, but these archaic uniforms were worn in the early stages of the war. Image: Scientific American Supplement, November 21, 1914

Editor’s note (4/2/2017): This week marks the 100-year anniversary of the U.S. entry into the First World War. Scientific American, founded in 1845, spent the war years covering the monumental innovations that changed the course of history, from the first tanks and aerial combat to the first widespread attacks with chemical weapons. To mark the centennial, we are republishing the article below and many others. For full access to our archival coverage of the Great War sign up for an All Access subscription today.

On August 4, German troops invaded Belgium, Britain had declared war on Germany and the fighting had started in earnest. There was a widespread feeling that the war would be short and decisive, despite the size of the armies involved. New weapons, it was thought, might provide a quick way to overcome any perceived advantage an enemy might have. Casualties in this modern war would not be excessive. By the end of the year, however, it was clear that not only would massive numbers of men need to fight but casualties would be immense. At least 300,000 Allied and 200,000 Central Powers soldiers were killed in five months, and there was a dawning realization that victory would come only after vast numbers of men and equipment had been thrown into the fray.

The images from this slide show depict a mix of old and new technologies and tactics vying for a place on the battlefields of 1914 as well as a look at some of the signal events of the early months of the war.

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